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Carrollton, Texas

Inside Carrollton's city limits, shrink-swell clay limits houses without basements on 65% of mapped land, higher than 70% of Texas cities. A shallow water table limits basements on 8%, the highest of 33 cities in Denton County.

That clay share is above Denton County's 50%. FEMA's flood data list 26 flood losses since 2016 in the 3 ZIP codes overlapping the city. Of its 54,365 homes, 26% were built before 1980; the median dates from 1988.

Data as of November 3, 2026 · sources · in Denton County

65%

expansive clay: shrink-swell limits slab homes

8%

high water table: limits basements

26

flood losses since 2016 in 3 overlapping ZIPs

26%

of homes built before 1980

Foundation repair in Carrollton

Foundation repair in Carrollton: shrink-swell clay limits slab homes on 65% of Carrollton's mapped land, more than in 70% of Texas cities.

About 31,700 of Carrollton's 54,365 homes are detached houses.

Who designs the repairThe ASCE Texas Section's repair guidelines say a Texas-licensed engineer should evaluate the foundation and design the repair (2022 guidelines)
PricesCost guide ranges compared

Soil under Carrollton city limits

Expansive clay (limits slab homes)65.4%
High water table (limits basements)8.3%
Septic fields very limited83.1%
Clay swell (LEP, by area)11.2%
High-swell land (LEP 6%+)63.2%
Urban land, not rated6.7%
Mapped soil23,925 acres
Soil seriesShare hereSeries nationally: expansive clay
Houston Black13%91%
Heiden13%80%
Trinity10%n/a
Branyon10%92%
Ovan8%n/a
Ferris6%n/a
Denton CountyCarrollton
Carrollton city limits inside Denton County, shaded by the city's expansive clay share.under 10%10-25%25-40%40-60%60%+

How we count

What the numbers mean here

Clay swell averages a linear extensibility of 11.2% by land area here, and 63% of the land reaches USDA's high class (6% or more). Clay like that swells when wet and shrinks when dry, under 65% of the mapped land.

Clay shrinks as it dries: 39.7% of Denton County is in drought on the latest map, and 65% of Carrollton's mapped land has shrink-swell clay.

USDA rates 83% of the land very limited for septic absorption fields.

Carrollton covers 36.6 square miles of land and counts 54,365 housing units, about 1,485 per square mile.

59% of Carrollton's occupied homes are owner-occupied, and the median owner-occupied home is valued at $381,000; 30% of all homes in the city date from 2000 or later.

The largest soil series under Carrollton is Houston Black, on 13% of the mapped land, followed by Heiden at 13%.

USDA's soil survey maps 23,925 acres inside Carrollton's city limits.

Drought in Denton County

39.7% of Denton County is in drought (D1 or worse) on the November 3, 2026 map. County detail.

November 11, 2025Share of area in drought, weeklyNovember 3, 2026

Flood losses by ZIP code

FEMA flood records since 2016 in the ZIP codes that overlap Carrollton. ZIP areas reach past city limits.

ZIPShare of city landFlood lossesPaid
7500646%15$121,605
7500732%10$112,663
7501018%1$1,909

Homes in Carrollton

Housing units54,365
Median year built1988
Built before 198026%
Built 2000 or later30%
Owner-occupied59%
Median value, owner-occupied$381,000
Single-family detached58%

Nearby cities

PlaceDistanceExpansive clayHigh water table
Hebron 4 mi 66% 0%
Addison 4 mi 28% under 1%
Farmers Branch 4 mi 45% 3%
Coppell 6 mi 58% 11%
Lewisville 6 mi 49% 4%
The Colony 7 mi 68% 0%
Plano 10 mi 75% under 1%
Irving 10 mi 65% 10%

Sources: USDA SSURGO (August 5, 2026) · US Drought Monitor (November 3, 2026) · FEMA NFIP v3 (September 9, 2026) · Census ACS 2020-2024. Methods · Data status